From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

S-200 is a bioremediation product used to clean up
oil spills. It is an
oleophilic nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizer, sometimes known as a
super nutrient, that promotes the growth of
micro-organisms that degrade hydrocarbons (such as oil and fuel). The
effects of S-200 were studied on a beach affected by the Prestige oil
spill off the coast of Spain in 2002, the study concluded that
S-200 enhanced the biodegradation rate of specific compounds, but
the evidence did not establish whether it had improved the visible
aspect of the beach, detached stuck oil, or reduced weathered oil.
Other compounds, such as uric acid and lecithin, may be more effective than
S-200.

In 2006, other researchers summarized the findings of
experiments on Prestige-affected coastal areas, concluding that
oloephilic fertilizers such as S-200 were of "limited
effectiveness.[1]

The product was developed by International Environmental
Products, a US company based around S-200 as its product.[2]

Contents

Field
tests

Volunteers cleaning the coastline in Galicia in the aftermath of
the Prestige catastrophe, March, 2002

In 2006, a field bioremediation assay was conducted by the
Department of Microbiology, University of Barcelona on the
use of S-200 ten months after the Prestige heavy fuel-oil spill on
a beach of the Cantabrian coast in northern Spain. The field survey
indicated that S-200 enhanced the biodegradation rate, particularly
of high molecular weight n-alkanes, alkylcyclohexanes, and
benzenes, and alkylated PAHs. The most significant molecular
bioremediation indicators were the depletion of diasteranes and
C-27 sterane components.[3]

However, the study was confined to analysis of specific
compounds, and did not report whether the application of S-200
caused a decrease in the amount of weathered oil, the detachment of
any oil that had been stuck, or any improvement to the visible
appearance of the beach.[4]

In 2006, other researchers summarized the findings of
experiments on Prestige-affected coastal areas, concluding
that oloephilic fertilizers such as S-200 were of "limited
effectiveness".[5]

A 2007 test by researchers at the Technical University of
Crete comparing a control to treatment by S-200 and treatment
by uric acid and lecithin found that the
hydrocarbon degredation in a period of 7 days was greater with the
uric acid and lecithin treatment than it was with the S-200
treatment and the control.[6]

The Prestige Oil Spill - The Prestige Oil Spill. 2. Enhanced Biodegradation of a Heavy Fuel Oil under Field Conditions by the Use of an Oleophilic Fertilizer - Environmental Science & Technology (ACS Publications)